The Water Cycle

Wind can move the clouds. For example, the on-shore winds in the diagram below are pushing the clouds over the land. Eventually the clouds cannot hold any more water droplets and so it starts raining. If the clouds have been pushed high enough, then it may be so cold that the water droplets in the clouds start to freeze and form snow.

Various things may now happen to the water as it reaches the Earth's surface in the form of either rain or snow. If it falls as snow high up on a mountaintop, the snow may stay there over the winter. In the spring, with the spring melt, some of this snow may melt. The melt waters will form mountain rivers, which will run downwards joining other rivers, and eventually flow back into the sea.

Some of the rain falls onto the land where it will form surface water running into rivers that once again will eventually flow into the sea. As the water travels over the surface, mineral salts from the riverbed dissolve in the water.

Some of the rain may filter into the soil and drain downwards. There are holes between the particles of soil where water can accumulate.

Water that is under the surface of the Earth is America. called groundwater. As the water travels through the soil and rocks, minerals dissolve in it. This results in mineral water, such as Evian or Volvic.

Even though these waters now carry dissolved minerals, they are still called fresh water. There are hardly any salts in it compared to the salts in sea water. The rivers enter the sea again replacing the water that was evaporated.

And the cycle starts again...

• The Water Cycle Homepage
• The Globe and the Water Cycle
• Humans and the Water Cycle
• Top of Page

© Paul Billiet, Shirley Burchill, Alan Damon and Deborah James 2009